Kronos
World: 'Kronos *'Location: 'Core Worlds *'Type: 'Hive World *'Tithe: 'Plasma Kronos exports large amounts of Hydrogen & Helium, used for fuel in plasma reactors. As a highly productive & industrialised Hive World is also tithes a large amount of commercial goods and heavy machinery, though its overall value pales in comparison to the colossal plasma fuel exports. *'Population: '23 Billion 000 000 000 total **'Upper: '16 billion 000 000 000 **'Under: 7 billion 000 000 000 *'Government: '''Imperial Corporate Dictatorship. Different regions of Kronos are ruled by the corporations which own the local helium mining industries. These corporations almost invariably also control the service industres of the cities above their land. Above all these corporations is the Imperial Government that sets broad laws and taxation rules for the corporations, though is quite detached from the specific governance of their territories. The current head of the Imperial Government and therefore the planetary governor is '''Lord Brenon Ursus' of the Ursus Dynasty. 'Description' Kronos' surface is a radiation-tainted wasteland that was in the past subject to intense cosmic radiation that is thought to have synthesised large hydrogen & helium deposits in the planet's crust. Because of this is plays host to a large helium mining industry that supplies fusion reactors across the sector - most critically the plasma reactors that power much of the Imperial Navy's warships. First colonised during the Great Crusade, the vast majority of Kronos' development over the millennia was pursued by private entities seeking business & profit, and thus Kronos has developed into a hive world that consists of two major tiers. The lower tier dwells on the surface of the planet itself, operating the helium mining facilities. Consisting of what is practically a slave-caste of people, they are heavily tainted by mutations as a result of the radiation that bombards the surface. This vast population is kept mostly in ignorance of the outside world, the Imperial Cult drilled into them extensively to ensure obedience to their laborious & ignoble lives. Above them dwells the other half of Kronos. Great dense cities are suspended miles overhead upon great pillars and suspensor fields, blotting out the underdwellers' sky. These cities house a wide class of people, ranging from homeless peasantry to the most wealthy & privileged of Nobles. But no matter what their station they are higher than the underdwellers, who after millennia of isolation and separation from the upperdwellers are barely seen as human by most. The upperdwellers - thanks to the labour of the underdwellers - are afforded a tremendous wealth and the sky-hives operate massive service economies along with highly advanced manufacturing industries. Even the common upperdwellers have access to higher technologies like basic bionics and ease-of-life devices, all created & provided by the corporations that essentially own Kronos. These corporations have strong financial links to the Adeptus Mechanicus, and Kronos has a massive AdMech presence for a non-Forge World. Such freely availably and utilised technology has resulted in a radically different culture amongst the upperdwellers compared to most Hive Worlds, a culture of technological exploitation where money rules and cheap distractions & entertainment abound for all. Meanwhile the corporations fight shadow wars amongst themselves for territority and technology. *'Technology: '- Admirable The wealthy economy of the upperdwellers - and the high presence of the Adeptus Mechanicus - afford even the common citizenry of the cities a excellent level of technology. However the only real technologies affored to the underdwellers are for helium mining purposes. *'Military:' The corporations control their own substantial security forces that collectively count as the world's PDF. Meanwhile most of their Imperial Guard tithe consists of mutant underdwellers sent into Labour Regiments as well as volunteer soldiers from the upperdwellers. *'Strategic importance: 'Media Though Kronos plasma fuels are widely utilised by Sector Deus, it would be possible to use alternate sources. Massive inconveniences and cost spikes would result, but it is not believed that any other world would collapse completely as a result. *'Loyalty: '70% Some critics say that technology is being worshipped more than the Emperor among the Kronos upperdwellers, though in truth they are mostly satisfied & placated enough that they believe in the will of the Emperor readily. Meanwhile the underdwellers are fanatically loyal to the Emperor and the Imperial Cult, religious fervour the only escape from their hopeless lives. Because of this most believe that the underdwellers would be far more loyal to the Ecclesiarchy over the Imperial at large if such a conflict arose. Notable Locations Kronos is home to numerous large sky-hives, each one built above large helium mining territories on colossal pillars and frame megastructures. The rest of the planet is little more than a barren, rad-tainted wasteland. *'The Allspire' - The planetary capital, this is a single thick spire located near the planet's north pole that pierces the sky like a great spear, and is protected by void shields, heavy guns and a large number of troops. This is the home of the Imperial Government that extends its will to all corners of Kronos, enforcing the payment of the Imperial Tithe and ensuring the enforcement of Imperial law. However the local rules and governance are left to the corporate rulers. The Allspires inhabitants are primarily Adepts of the Administratum, though other Imperial insitutions on Kronos such as the Ecclesiarchy make their headquarters here. Notable inhabitants: **'Planetary Governor Brenon Ursus' - A member of the Ursus Dynasty. Brenon oversees the Administratum personnel of The Allspire that tend to the interstellar governance of the planet, and is an intelligent, stern man who commands respect and gives it to those who prove themselves. It is Brenon's lofty duty to ensure that no single faction on Kronos becomes powerful enough to challenge the Imperial status quo whilst ensuring they are all producing enough **'Cardinal Eorod Kallhein' - As a decentralised world Kronos has no single primary Cathedral, though many are spread across the planet. Kronos' faith is perhaps not as strong as many Imperial worlds, a fact that aggravates the Ecclesiarchy greatly and limits their influence on this world's upperdwellers. By contrast however the underdwellars are fanatically loyal to the Imperial Cult and it is an open secret that the Ecclesiarchy could potentially bring catastrophe to Kronos should they choose to inspire an underdweller rebellion. Despite the upperdwellers' lack of fanatacism, their tanacious pursuit of corporate success and need for the Administratum's cooperation keeps the corps commited to the Imperium, while the common citizen has such an insurmountable dependancy on these corps that they have no choice but to serve loyally. Cardinal Kallhein of the Eaglebearers oversees this world, though his duties mostly involve blessing the good & righly pious Adepts of the Allspire and sermonising conscripted underdwellar regiments before they leave Kronos. *'Sardassia' - This vast sprawling metropolis - hundreds of miles in breadth - is the largest sky-hive on Kronos by far, and is thus the centre of its corporate economy. Most of the megacorps have their headquarters in Sardassia and the entire city is heavily factionalized, with different districts controlled by different corps, and the streets & district borders are patrolled by corporate enforcers while the local outlets & stores must usually draw their entire stock from the megacorp that rules their turf. Because of these local monopolies on mass-produced stock, Sardassia's streets are home to a great many independant retailers, crafters, tinkerers, technicians, and other small businesses that don't rely on marked-up mass stock. Sardassia - and all Kronian sky-hives - is much flatter and broader than typical hive cities, its great mass spready wide across many suspension pillars and grav-fields. Therefore while the city's long, deep streets lie in the shadows & artificial lights of colossal skyscraper blocks and rumbling manufacturing plants, they are at least open to the true sky. Autos of all kinds fill the streets of commoners while lighters & grav-autos glide through the sky between penthouses of the Nobility, and in Sardassia's darker & danker places gangs rule the streets and violence is as much a commodity as currency. **'Fortress of Judgement' - The central Arbites precinct in Sardassia. The Arbites are the primary agents on Imperial Will on Kronos and cut through borders, blockades, local security and corp enforcers with absolute authority. The Adeptus Arbites has power over the life and death of all of Kronos' citizens from the lowliest street punk to the highest of corporate executives, and have little patience for claims of wealth & privilege. Rightly feared by Kronos' corporate leaders, the Arbites ensure that tithes are always paid in full and Imperial morality is upheld. ***'Marshal Marius Falko' - A terror-inducingly large man who has policed Kronos' arrogant corporate upper class for over a century. Falko brooks no impudence from anyone under his jurisdiction and has executed at least half a dozen executives over his career for disobedience, and is famous for giving a severe judicial beating to the entire Astarpa Ruling Board in one eventful meeting. Needless to say Falko has many powerful enemies but most are far too scared to even think of acting against him, for the retribution of the Adeptus Arbites is a terrible thing to behold. **'Colossus' - A truly vast megacorp that controls a large swathe of Sardassia, including its heaviest industrial blocks and the vast helium mining lands directly beneath. Colossus manufactures every kind of good imaginable from household utensils to firearms and has millions of employees ranging from manufactorum labourers to powerful executives. Colossus is known as a stern, authoritarian, but fair ruler of their districts, who impose a conservative morality upon their subjects. Their extensive monitoring systems and efficient, well-trained, and 'humane' security force keeps unrest & bloodshed to a minimum, though it comes at the cost of near-zero privacy for the citizens who live under its umbrella. For obvious reasons younger people tend to seek to leave Colossus districts while families & older people seeking stability tend to move in. **'Zarthia-Panex' - Another vast consortium that rivals Colossus and Astarpa in size, Zarthia-Panex controls almost all of Sardassia's northwest corner along with the small outlying sky-hive of Graelin. This corp is massive and its many divisions produce common goods of all kinds as well as heavy machinery and high tech. They are known more widely however as the Sector's largest non-AdMech cybernetics manufacturer and offers an enormous variety of limbs - ranging from basic replacements to industrial-strength claws & digitigrade power legs - as well as sensory augmentations and other bionics. While the best and most finely tailored bionics can only be found on Forge Worlds, Zarthia-Panex offers the finest variety of mass produced affordable bionics that can be found. Naturally the people in Zathia-Panex territory can be highly cybernetic, as are the corp's ornate & elite Guardian Troops (in contrast to their more muted & plan enforcers). The Corp itself is more interventionalist with citizens than Astarpa, though less so than Colossus, so while Zarthia-Panex struggles to prevent crime amongst their bionically diverse citizens, tey have the means & personnel to apprehend & punish criminals and maintain civil order. Zarthia-Panex's weapons fivision is noted for its lightweight firearms and effective lasgun variants, and supplies many weapons to the planet's Arbites. However its influence varies throughout its territority depending on employee density, and some parts are unpleasant hotbeds of crime and poverty. In such places, Corps often hire local mercenaries & agents to do their bidding, rather than provoke a hornet's nest with a full enforcer incursion. **'Astarpa' - Another massive corporation that controls large parts of Sardassia. Astarpa focuses on higher tech, vehicles, cybernetics, and armaments as well as financial services, leaving local businesses in its territory to provide less sophisticated goods. Astarpa has a very hands-off approach to ruling and its territory is known as a land of opportunity & ever-changing circumstance, but also danger and a hotbed of crime. Astarpa favours mercenaries & contracted agents to enforce their will rather than large scale enforcer divisions, and is utterly ruthless. They have been known to execute any citizen that assaults or thieves from an Astarpa employee, and have been observed tearing the cybernetics from living citizens indebted to them. Despite this, the freedom & opportunity their territory offers keeps people coming. **'XitaCorp' - A young corporation that made enormous profits in the last few decades with lucrative aircraft contracts with Imperial institutions including the Imperial Navy. They control a small but growing territory on the western edge of Sardassia and have been using their abundance of potent hovering flyers and expensive mercenaries to expand their territory. Through their military contacts they have also acquired powerful weapons such as plasma & melta, and are causing serious problems for any that try to resist their expansion. Almost megalomaniacal in their fervour for expansion, XitaCorp is known to be brutally oppressive to their newly claimed territories in ways that are starting to strain the Arbites' tolerance. **'Chayson Dynasty' - One of the largest family-owned corps on Kronos and a close relation to the Chay Dynasty of Rogue Traders. The Chaysons own the entirety of a prominent peninsula on Sardassia's souther edge that services a vast amount of surface mining territory and plays host to substantial gas processing facilities. The Chayson's main export is processed gasses, leaving other industries to local businesses, though they also have an enormous explosives industry that is closely guarded. The Chayson's territory contains an orbital elevator through which runs enormous pipes that carry gas up to ships in orbit for transportation and refuelling, and they have a relatively small but well-equipped force of enforcers and House Guards that keep their districts secure from outside influence. The Chayson Peninsula is known as peaceful and very wealthy thanks to its enormous gas income, but is forced to guard its borders to prevent overcrowding as a result. **'Marghul Industries' - A heavy vehicle manufacturer that controls a small territory near Sardassia's centre. This despotic corp has sealed its districts off to prevent anyone from leaving and they are notoriously harsh & demanding to their citizens, treating them alsmost like slaves. The factories churn day & night, while rebellious street gangs have gun battles with the brutal Marghul Security Forces on a regular basis. Marghul lackeys hold absolute powers over the common people and are well-known to abuse it, and this territory is overwhelmed by fear of the Corp. **'Grey Division '- The headquarters of this large, sector-spanning mercenary corporation are located near the centre of Sardassia. The massive Grey Division fortress is a sovereign region controlled by no other, and is located on the border of Colossus' vast territory. These headquarters are home to enormous training facilities, armouries, and administration services that keep the Sector-spanning mercenary group together. Grey Divison also has innumerable outposts, safe houses, and rep offices across Sardassia and Kronos, selling their services to whoever can afford them. *'Bilarhea' - A small sky-hive controlled in its entirety by a megacorp named Tychus. Bilarhea is home to the most prolific & advanced AdMech temples ensuring that Tychus is able to produce the best quality goods and rarest designs. Tychus funnels enormous amounts of resources into their AdMech temples to ensure their name is a byword for prestige & quality across the Sector, and their most prestigious contract is the construction of Hellguns for the Tempestus Scions of Athena Prime. Thanks to its quality forges Bilarhea itself is almost alien in its technological superiority. Gleaming cybernetics and hypnotic holo-projections can been seen in any common street, quality synthesised provisions feed the entire populace with ease, and legions of micro-servitors keep the city shining clean and in perfect working order. It is a paradise that could, however, be withdrawn in its entirety by the AdMech the very moment Tychus no longer supplies them with vast payments, and the now-dependant population is likely to collapse completely without the comforts thet have grown accustomed to. Other notable planets in the system 'Aroicka' *'World:' Aroicka *'Type:' Hot Mining World *'Tithe: 'Ferrum Aroicka tithes a large amounts of industrial metals. *'Population:' 210 million 000 000 *'Government:' Imperial Corporate Dictatorship. Most of Aroicka is owned by Kronian corporations. *'Description:' A hot, dusty world covered in extensive mining operations that hew tonnes of ore from the earth to feed the technological production of Kronos itself. Most of the population consists of exported Kronian underdwellers, their lives little better in the dusty mines of Aroicka than the rad-drenched surface of Kronos. *'Technology:' - Imperial The mining operations are simple & reliable. *'Military:' Aroicka's own military force is limited to corporate guards & enforcers. But they would use their Kronos-based armies to defend their interests here if necessary. *'Strategic importance:' Minima Though it has high monetary value to the Kronian corporations, Aroicka has little to no significance to the wider Imperium. *'Loyalty: '40%; Ecclesiarchy 90% The underdweller population resent their corporate overlords and the Imperium they represent, however they have a fanatical devotion to the Emperor & the Imperial Cult. 'Naldavash' *'World:' Naldavash *'Type:' Cold World *'Tithe: 'Nix *'Population:' N/A *'Government:' N/A *'Description:' A small ball of snow & ice in the system's outer reaches. Naldavash is expected to be the next major place of expansion once the mines on Aroicka start to dry up, thanks to its large resource reserves. Corporations are already fighting over Naldashi territory, each eager to maximise their slice of the planet. *'Technology:' N/A *'Military:' N/A *'Strategic importance:' Nix *'Loyalty:' N/A Category:Subsector Deus Category:Planet Category:Imperial World Category:Hive World